Google Chromecast teardown

Editor: Staff Editor

Ding, dong, the dongle's here! Google knows that cat videos are more entertaining when viewed on a 72-inch HD display.

So they packed Chrome into a compact dongle, threw an HDMI output on it, and provided the world with the cat videos we deserve! Join us as we tear down the Chromecast to find out how Google squeezed so many cats into one small package.

Unlike a lot of devices that end up on our teardown table these days, the Chromecast takes very little effort to open—just a little prying from our plastic opening tool. Of course, there wasn’t much to tear down. There are exactly two components in this little device: a motherboard and a heatsink in a tiny, tiny coffin.

We’ve decided not to assign a repairability score to the Chromecast. There’s just nothing in it to repair. The Chromecast is essentially a luxury item with a limited use. It’s a throwaway gadget. Best hope for this little guy: after a long, fulfilling life of streaming kitten videos, the Chromecast is responsibly recycled.

Cool stuff we found inside:

Azure Wave AW-NH387 802.11 b/g/n WLAN, Bluetooth, FM combo module IC

Marvell DE3005-A1 System-on-a-chip, similar to the Marvell DE3005

Micron 4GB flash memory 29F16G08MAA

Micron D9PXV 4Gb RAM

With the motherboard out of the way, we are left with one component, and one component alone: a heatsink. The relatively big heatsink — made of solid aluminum — spans the entire length of the device.-----